


Empty Beds

by Squarepeg72



Series: Off the Pages [15]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Dumbledore's Army, Gryffindor, Other, Pre-Battle of Hogwarts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-25
Updated: 2019-08-25
Packaged: 2020-09-26 16:43:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,128
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20392882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Squarepeg72/pseuds/Squarepeg72
Summary: Sometimes being left behind is a bigger battle than being on the front lines. Can they hold down the fort and survive thier nightmares until The Golden Trio returns?





	Empty Beds

**Author's Note:**

  * For [NathanielCardeu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NathanielCardeu/gifts).

> Inspired by this headcannon posted on Facebook by Nathaniel Cardeu
> 
> [](https://www.flickr.com/photos/148170750@N07/48618518793/in/dateposted-public/)  

> 
> Song: Empty Chairs from Les Miserable (sung by Eddie Redmayne)
> 
> [](https://www.flickr.com/photos/148170750@N07/48618519603/in/dateposted-public/)  


_Nev -_

_The Army is yours to command. Take care of them. They will need you now more than ever. We will come back when we can._

_Harry_

Neville looked at the scrap of parchment until the words ran together. This was not how he thought this train ride would start. He knew Harry, Ron, and Hermione had talked about not coming back for their seventh year, but he never thought they would follow through. He did not know if he was strong enough to do this. But when an owl drops marching orders in your lap, you follow them and take command until the commander returns to the front.

_Seamus -_

_Take care of this for me. Mum says it puts you all in danger if we are caught. Don’t forget me. I’ll come back when it is safe to be different._

_Dean_

Seamus sat in the quiet compartment and flipped through the pages of Dean’s sketchbook. He had not expected an owl to deliver the small book to him over the summer. He had carefully folded the scrap of parchment that explained why he was holding someone else’s most prized possession and tucked it back into the book. The swaying of the train lulled him to sleep as he joined Neville in staring out the windows as the world rushed by.

_Mate -_

_I don’t know how you did this. The Carrows are trying to kill me. Don’t worry, Ginny and Luna are safe. We are doing what we can to protect the younger ones and train the older ones to help. The Room of Requirement is the only safe space we have. I don’t want to go back to the dorms, but the Carrows will be looking for me soon. Stay safe and come back._

_Nev_

Neville groaned as he closed the journal he had begun writing in the first night back in the dorms. He had a fresh set of welts on his back, and he was still limping from the hexing the Carrows had dished out the night before. He carefully tucked the journal under the pillow on the bed that should be Harry’s before he laid down on the one that should be Ron’s. The dorms were too quiet now. He missed the pillow fights and laughter that had filled the nights before this year. He missed his friends, even if they got him in trouble. At least that kind of trouble never got him hexed.

_Dean -_

_I miss you. I got caught by the Carrows out of the dorm after curfew and now it hurts to breathe. I’m laying on your bed hoping that will help. Be safe._

_Seamus_

Seamus tucked the scrap of parchment into Dean’s sketchbook. There are dozens of scraps like this one in the book now. He started putting his thoughts on paper after the first time the Carrows cracked his ribs because he let them come out of his mouth. McGonagall was trying to protect them as much as she could, but she was caught in the same trap as the rest of them. Carefully laying back on the bed that wasn’t his, Seamus buried his head in Dean’s pillow and let his eyes leak. He would find the energy to sneak to the Infirmary later.

_Streaks of green light surrounded him as he ran down a long corridor. He couldn’t let them catch him. He had barely survived the last time they had hexed him. His parents’ voices whispered for him to run. “Run, little duck. Run.” The sounds of heavy feet were matched by the green cursed flashes of light that promised unending pain if they caught him._

Neville sat up in bed, dripping with sweat. This nightmare had to stop. He was tired of running, but he needed sleep to protect the most innocent victims of the war that was happening in the shadows. He had been chased by the Curiatus curse in his sleep for weeks. It was bad enough he had to survive the hexes of those in charge while he was awake. He didn’t know if he could survive this war if he had to dodge curses in his sleep.

_The room was too quiet. Seamus could feel a breeze blow through the room, but there shouldn’t be one. He slowly opened his eyes and was chilled by what he saw. Familiar but ghostly shapes sitting on beds laughing without making a sound. “Ron? Harry? Dean? Are you really here?”_

_“No, my friend… we are shadows waiting for you to join us …”_

Seamus shook his head as he sat up in his bed. This dream was happening more and more. He and Neville were the only two in the room as the sun tried to break the gloom of early morning. Both of them stared at the other with haunted eyes. “Did you dream about them again?” Neville’s question whispered across the room.

“Yeah, they were barely there. Dean said they were waiting for us in the shadows.” Seamus’ voice felt raw as he told Neville about the dream. He clutched Dean’s sketchbook to his chest reflexively. “That could be good, or it could be bad.”

“No time to think about it now,” Neville groaned as he rolled out of Ron’s bed. “We have to get ready for morning line up. I think I talked Ginny and Luna into keeping some of the first years hidden in the room for a while. The war is getting closer. I hope they can join us in more than just our dreams.”

Seamus looked closer at Harry’s bed. “Ginny’s been here again.”

“She comes here every night.” Neville smoothed the covers on the bed he had been sleeping on. “She misses them, too. I think she worries that the war has taken them and we will never know.”

“They are not leaving us,” Seamus smoothed the covers on Harry’s bed. “They are coming. The war is coming to our door soon.”

_She was chasing shadows. She could hear Harry, Hermione, and Ron calling her name, but she could never catch up to them. “Come to me, Harry. We need you.”_

Ginny woke up as Seamus shook her shoulder. “Ginny, you okay? You were talking in your sleep.”

Ginny felt the bed shift as Neville joined them. “It’s okay. You’re safe here.” Neville put an arm around her shoulder. “It’s almost sunrise. You need to get back to your bed before you are missed.”

“It won’t be long now.” Neville sighed. “We just have to stay strong for a little longer.”

“Just a little longer.” Seamus echoed Neville’s whisper with one of his own. “They are coming, and we need to be ready when they get here. It is time to mean it when we fight back.”


End file.
